Delaware 24 Rhode Island 19

There is no need for us FIGHTIN BLUE HEN fans to worry if we’re gonna get it in to the FCS Tournament in late November, because the playoffs begin for Delaware on Saturday. Let’s do some quick analysis on why …

let’s say the loss to Navy and win against WC cancel each other out and mean nothing to NCAA committee

we all should assume the DSU win means little because the Hornets were severely overmatched

solid CAA win at home against ODU and a solid road loss to highly ranked Maine, is okay for us

a shutout of overrated W&M is not helping us too much this season

certainly a BAD loss at HOME against UMass is the black eye on the UD 2011 record so far

If I’m an NCAA FCS playoffs committee person, what reason do I have to put UD in playoffs other than legacy? We got ZERO road wins! And actually, beating URI this week and losing to Towson next week will prove that UD cannot beat the top dogs of the CAA in 2011. Let me throw this stat out there as well … take away the WC & DSU scores and UD is avg’ing 18.4 pts a game, ugh. Granted, we have been playing with a pretty decent backup QB in Tim Donnelly, but the Hens backs are against the wall now. Winning in Kingston on Satruday is par for the course right now, but KC can’t let the game look or feel that way before the kids take the field.

KC has to send a message and let everyone know how much this game really means.

Okay, nice work coach.

Breakdown:

After last week’s flat performance, I’m not sure which UD team is gonna take the field. Especially now that Trevor is back under center. Looking at the numbers, it seems URI is gonna win this game, but I’m gonna take a leap of faith and go with UD and Sasek.

Hens gotta get on the board early and stay on top before the half. This team does not give me much confidence in a come-from-behind scenario, especially on the road. UD needs lots of Pierce and Hayes rushing yards to keep Rams QB Probst off the field and flinging the ball all over the UD secondary. My hopes are on Sasek re-energizing the Blue Hens offense and engineering a time-consuming late-scoring drive which keeps the Rams from stealing the game in a 2-minute drill slash heart-breaking TD drive.

Delaware 24

Rhode Island 19

[hr]

Your turn … how do you feel this game will unfold?

W

L

Pts

AH2Delaware

5

2

39

Psycho Dan

6

1

36

Rich

5

2

32

Danny

5

2

32

Ethan

5

2

31

Jon

2

3

17

Marcuscope

2

2

10

RJ

0

1

0

Sasha

0

1

0

Steve K

0

1

0

[divider]

Don’t fret about the standings if you have predicted before or not … just join in! It’s all for fun.

I usually worry about every opponent, and this one is no exception, especially after URI played UD tough last year at home, giving the Rams confidence going into this game. But Delaware has a few pluses of their own:

-No Rob Neviaser this year to steal signals (how could Hens let that happen last year?).

-Keeler should have guys more ready than last week after tough week of practice, especially with their playoff backs against the wall.

-Sasek adds one more much needed weapon to the offense (other than Nihja and Pierce) with his running ability.

-Rhode Island’s record. Yeah I know they’ve had a tough schedule, but 1-5 is 1-5.

I think the Hens are a little embarrassed after what happened last week. And they should know that having four losses is no guarantee of still making the postseason, even in this conference. Weak wins over West Chester and Del St. and a loss to 1-5 URI would all but kill their chances, even if they ran the table after Saturday.

It’s a rebuilding year. Such a year can mean – no playoffs; or can be a season over which a young team matures — finishing strongly, making the playoffs. We find out today. UD takes the first step towards an 8-3 record and becoming a contender, winning 31-13.